In search of discreet advice about romantic traditions

[katayoku_tenshi]

I... er... have some questions I'd like to ask.

I believe I have performed adequate basic research upon the upcoming holiday, but, as ever, the details prove both essential to master and challenging to select.

Would anyone who is familiar with Cloud's world

any world?

...I may need all the help I can get...would anyone feel inclined to offer

Comments

//to Sephiroth

[lady_caterina]

What...sort of suggestion, brother?

[ooc: Perhaps you'd better ignore the reply on the other..xDD Imma sorreh x_x]

Re: //to Sephiroth

[katayoku_tenshi]

I...

there are too many things I don't know, about how things ought to be done.

What kind of restaurant to choose. Whether some place other than a restaurant might be innovative and romantic, or merely laughable.

How to determine what the 'right moment' is.

How to find the right words, when there have been so many poets who have apparently thought that no proper set of words had yet been formulated, since they all persist in trying to assemble them for themselves.

What to do if he says no, or if he laughs at me.

Even how to ask for advice without seeing it trumpeted all over the city -- I...

Yuuko, gods damn it--

...I don't know too many things.

Re: //to Sephiroth

[lady_caterina]

Dear brother mine...firstly. *hugs* Do calm. This is Cloud . I don't think he would say no, or laugh at you ...at you, no. With you, yes.

You do realise my only practical experience with this comes well after the proposal?

And no, that almost-proposal I received in college does not count, brother dearest.

[ooc: She's trying...she really is xD]

Re: //to Sephiroth

[katayoku_tenshi]

I... really don't know what he might say. The speculation has quickly gotten out of hand in certain areas, and I hope that he doesn't mistake that to mean that I would... presume upon his reply, or

Re: //to Sephiroth

[lady_caterina]

Speculation is of course, not fact, and it's entirely possible he won't hear of it at all, isn't it? After all, dear brother, I would think quite a few couples might be in the same situation on the same day....

I can't imagine what this must be like for you....the anticipation and the worry. Brother mine, you must have nerves of steel....Well, yes, I know that I could know but it seems rather rude to purposefully peer at your emotions just because I can.

And your suggestion with Sydney was perfect....Perhaps we have all the aid we shall need there...

I can tell that you're all concerned that everything is perfect....and that's understandable. But do keep in mind....Cloud loves you, and love is not about someone's perfections but rather knowing all their flaws and ideosyncracies and still letting them fill your heart and soul. So if something, God forbid, does get a little tangled, don't try not to stress out. The important thing is that you get your chance, isn't it

Re: //to Sephiroth

[katayoku_tenshi]

I hope so. Clearly, from the fact that the day exists, I am by definition not the first to have struggled with such concerns. I just feel... ill prepared.

It's largely that I never truly noticed the holidays in my first world, I suppose. We changed shift rosters to accommodate those with families and worked longer hours to cover for those who didn't show up on time due to some overindulgence or other, and that was all a holiday signified to me.

And this time last year... I'd barely been here two or three weeks; looking back, I was so far from civilized then, I'm surprised that Cloud didn't simply keep me out in the yard with a leash and a muzzle. I neither knew nor particularly cared what human traditions meant to them.

Now I wish to care, and there is still so much to learn...

Really? That's good to know. Perhaps I should 'motivate' him with the threat of eternal agony in a hell wrought of papercuts, bad muzak, and pink lace decor more often. :3

I'm kidding.

Mostly.

Maybe.You're right, as usual. Of course, the most

Re: //to Sephiroth

[lady_caterina]

Love makes fools of us all, dear brother. *smiles* I think you're headed in the right direction....at least you've acknowledged that you do have a heart and not just a chunk of ice, right? *is only teasing...really xD* That's certainly something I've been accused of, more than once.

I know how unnerving it is to make oneself so vulnerable to another, even a special other that one is 99.7% certain that one can trust implicitly. And yet there is that 0.03% that remembers all too well what betrayal feels like...Just keep in mind that this is your Cloud, your precious one, and I am sure once you start to speak, you'll find it all falls in place.

Well...that would certainly fit my notion of hell....Ugh. Pink? Pink lace?

Yes,yes, it was an exceedingly nice experience, all the way around. Though, in all honesty, if you're quite hungry you might want a snack before you go....the food is more about being artistic and tasty than in quantity...

[ooc: mun needs to take care of herself >[ Let the world's biggest hypocrite in this matter

Re: //to Sephiroth

[katayoku_tenshi]

Betrayal is the farthest thing from my mind. It's just that I could all too easily understand why he might not wish to formally bind his life and his soul to someone as ...damaged as I am. Mother's latest incursion was proof enough of my vulnerability, and I know that I ...distressed him, when I was less than myself.

So I dare not lay odds on his acceptance. I simply have to offer the best of everything that I can give. So that whether or not he accepts, I'll know that I did everything to the best of my ability.

Pink lace is a close second to dog tongues in my personal accounting of unpleasant things. Also, I understand that most other people consider dog tongues charming expressors of affection rather than disease-distributing excretory organs. Therefore, it seems most prudent to replace the dog tongues with lace when designing threats for others... :3

I suspect I will be too nervous preoccupied with remembering each of the steps in the strategic plan to pay much attention to the food. But Cloud enjoys well-crafted artisinal food

Re: //to Sephiroth

[lady_caterina]

Brother, what happened with Her was not your fault, and distressed as he must be, I am sure Cloud understands that. Your best is all that you can offer....

Lace in general is not one of my favorite things....and pink is one of my least favorite colours...so..

I am sure he will, brother. Abel liked it....*smiles encouragingly*

[ooc: FR SRS xD]

Re: //to Sephiroth

[katayoku_tenshi]

Thank you for all your comfort and your advice, kind one. With the suggestions that I've gathered here and the research I've done, I believe that I can manage a creditable job of this.

I do have one more question -- the etiquette book I found indicates that a proper gentleman should hold a chair for his lady as she seats herself.

But neither Cloud nor I are female, and if anything, the length of my hair and the volume of my coat gives me a more female silhouette.

Do you think I should still offer to hold the restaurant's chair for him, as part of the practice of a gentleman's behavior?

Or is that a courtesy that is specifically for ladies to receive, rather than something that a gentleman should offer to his beloved?

If I should still offer the gesture -- is there some time that I might ask your assistance in practicing? I imagine that the timing could be a challenge, and I have no wish to knock him flat or upset the table by misjudging the rhythm or distance involved.

Re: //to Sephiroth

[lady_caterina]

Dear brother mine, long hair or not, no one is mistaking you for a female.

I don't see why you shouldn't....in this case, and for Cloud. It's a very gentlemanly gesture indeed.

Of course I will help you in any way that I can. The church is generally rather quiet, as you know...and you could practice as needed.

[ooc: OMG if you ever want to make this a log...xDDDD]

Re: //to Sephiroth

[katayoku_tenshi]

I doubt anyone would mistake me for female, no. It's just that if the origin of the chair ritual had some relationship to the awkwardness of managing skirts and long hair in addition to the chair itself, then my own appearance might be a closer analogue to a woman's than Cloud's is.

But if you believe its meaning has been sufficiently divorced from associations of gender and garments, then I would certainly appreciate the chance to practice in order to offer him all the courtesies the tradition holds. Thank you.

[ooc: I... can't actually figure how it would work as a log, given how extremely visual the process of working out the sitting-vs-pushing rhythm would be. XD But it is a pretty entertaining set of mental images...]

Re: //to Sephiroth

[lady_caterina]

*momentary amusement as Caterina refrains from pointing out that she deals with long hair, long skirts and far too many petticoats - every day* Chairs can be....annoying at times, dear brother. *the amusement is still there*

There is no need for thanks. If there is aught that I can do to further your chance at grasping happiness, rest assured that I will do so. Dear brother mine, you and all the other broken ones so neatly mended and still so fragile deserve a chance at happiness most of all. *For some reason a thought of Gyula, still in his self-infliected coma, crosses her mind*

[ooc: Work with me, I'm sure I can conjure up something...xDDD]

Re: //to Sephiroth

[katayoku_tenshi]

I had imagined that they might, yes. Between the corset and the petticoats -- and my own hair is long enough that I know sitting on it is a legitimate occupational hazard of seating oneself -- I do wonder if something garment-related might have been involved in the origins of that tradition...

[ooc: *sweeeeatdrop* if I remember the head count right, I'm going to be involved in four logs starting up this week, and since I always have a harder time with third-person at speed than with first-person at speed, I really don't know if I have the mental coordination to add that much action-choreography to the mix! I'm like 7/8 a dialogue writer with exposition only when you drag it out of me kicking and screaming... ^^;;;; if you have any way we could do it in dialogue or shorthand maybe?]

Re: //to Sephiroth

[lady_caterina]

Indeed it might very well have been. I confess that I am unfamiliar with the origin of many of our customs. I've not had sufficent time to research.

[ooc: It's ok, dear. The thought was just hilarious.... ^_^]